All Time

Friday, October 27, 2017

Stranger Things: Episode 15

15. The Lost Sister

Tapping into her mother's visions, Eleven runs away to Chicago this time to find her "sister". Kali AKA "008" (Linnea Berthelsen) can create and manipulate illusions, and has spent much of her teenage years rounding up the people of Hawkins Lab for revenge while orchestrating petty crimes on the side with her gang of outcasts. She becomes Eleven's coach to better control her telekinetic powers and convinces her to join them in their cause. Tracking one of the men she saw in her mother's visions, Eleven comes close to killing him, but backs out last minute when she sees his children. The man claims that Brenner is still alive and that he can bring them to him, but police interruption has left this option unexplorable for the time being. Contemplating on the true meaning of family and friendship, Eleven decides to travel back to Hawkins after seeing a vision of Hopper and Mike in trouble at the laboratory, leaving her long lost sister in her life of crime and hiding.

And Eleven is back! When Indiana's Upside Down becomes a little too boring, there's always neighboring Illinois for a life of gangsta crime. Awww, at least now El has a semblance of family, maybe not by blood but whatever. But then it's clear that she's just going to be used for some sort of hidden agenda. Give the kid a break. In any case, I think the episode was crucial in many ways. One, it gives you a glimpse of what future can be waiting for Eleven if she chooses the same path that Kali did. Two, the episode gives you an adrenaline rush that is not related to the Upside Down, which is a breath of fresh air from all the otherworldly shit we've witnesses in the last episode. Three, we finally get to know 008, who did a pretty kickass job opening Season Two's pilot. In the end, we all go back to Hawkins. After the cliffhanger in the last episode, it's obvious that everyone back there needs saving, and so here comes Jane. Out of curiosity, though, is Brenner still alive? For real? If so, how? His demise last season was quite clear.